Chapter 63: Fight For Your Right.
Jay's heart leapt into his throat and he moved out of pure instinct and he dodged the incoming lunge, "Hey! Whoa! Time out!" he yelled as he rolled clear before leaping back to his feet and saw Ketra lining up her next strike.
She snorted at him and her eyes narrowed, "Why do you call a halt?" she demanded pointing at him with her blade tip.
"I don't even know the rules!?" Jay exclaimed and Ketra looked thoughtful for a moment before becoming embarrassed as she realised that she had indeed forgotten to inform him of the rules of this duel before beginning it.
"My people call this the hoosdrah! It is a duel of honour that is fought between two parties, the winner may claim any boon they wish from the loser and the duel is fought until one combatant is unable to continue either by being subdued or caught by what would be a crippling or fatal blow but just like in sparring the blow is never ever landed, this is not a duel to harm, maim or kill this is a duel of honour where one or more parties seek to reaffirm their honour in the eyes of their peers or their opponent, none of the blows are to be anywhere close to full power and also if blood is drawn then the duel is ended and the one who drew it is declared the winner, is that clear?" Ketra said in a rather impatient voice.
"Weapons?' Jay asked.
"Sword, shield, fist or hoof only, no firearms so if you think you can win by simply pointing that rifle of yours at me and calling an end you are mistaken that would be a forfeit due to dishonourable conduct," Ketra said and Jay snorted indignantly.
"Hey I may be many things but dishonourable is NOT one of them," he said angrily and Ketra's expression morphed into one of apology.
"My apologies Jay I can get somewhat testy when my blood is up I meant no offence, now are you satisfied? May we continue?" she asked and Jay looked around before sighing heavily, there was no way out of this, he was going to have to fight her but one question kept rattling around in his head, after what she'd declared would be her prize at the beginning of all this, did he even want to win?
Suddenly he had an epiphany, it wasn't about that at all, not really, this was a test of honour, she was testing him, she wanted to see how he would respond to the challenge, she wanted to see if he would rise to it and therefore prove himself to be the male she believed him to be and if he surrendered he would say I have no will to fight for what I believe is right, he would be saying "Hey look at me I'm weak as fuck! Come stomp all over my beliefs."
A flash of anger surged through Jay and he swung his sword in a figure of eight movement in front of him getting a feel for the balance of the blade, he was a Saviour of Clan Mason, he was not weak and he was going to fucking well prove it, win or lose he was going to fucking well prove it, he would fight!
"I'm ready," he said steeling himself and dropping into a fighting stance holding the blade across his body at an angle, Ketra examining him before giving him a dark smile and a nod, 'Good then let us duel!" she yelled and then launched herself at him once more.
The noise of the blades crashing together must have alerted the other because no sooner had they started then they burst out of the undergrowth next to the clearing with their swords and shields at the ready, when they saw Ketra and Jay crossing blades they all stood there dumbfounded for a moment, even Xao looked both shocked and mystified.
That's when Ova seemed to click on to what was happening, "It's a hoosdrah! Ketra fights for honour!" she exclaimed and the others all seemed to click as one and instantly they moved to form a circle around them with Ova dragging the obviously still mystified Xao along with her and placing him in the circle.
"Cheer for your kinsman squire Xao as we cheer for ours, today you will see Beledon honour at its finest!" Ova said and despite him not having a clue what she said he just started joining with the cheering and whooping that was happening all around them which if Jay was honest was more disorientating than anything.
But honestly, he was more focused on staying on his feet under the near-constant pressure that Ketra was putting on him, she was like a force of fucking nature which given that she was a Dream Warrior and essentially the Beledon equivalent of a Seeker of Truth was not all that surprising.
Even if she was fighting fairly by not using her Dream Warrior abilities she was a truly fearsome warrior, graceful, strong, powerful and if he was truly honest with himself, radiantly beautiful.
Even as he fought to parry and deflect the seemingly never-ending maelstrom of blows that she was aiming at him from every direction as she danced around him Jay found himself becoming entranced by her, the way the sunlight made her fur look like liquid fire flowing over her magnificent body, the way her insanely large muscles bunched storing tremendous amounts of power that he knew if she truly unleashed would cut through him like he was made of bamboo, sword or no sword.
Ketra spun on her hooves into an outside spin for a quick one-handed slash and for a moment her many flares can catch the sunlight and it made her look like she had a golden halo surrounding her head, making her look like a giant war Angel or a Valkyrie for a moment, but it was a look of pure determination that was written across her strangely beautiful features that really caught his attentions, she was not only seemingly enjoying herself she was truly focused on winning and proving herself that it shone in her bright golden eyes.
But jay was not going to go down easy, far from it, every single Saviour is taught from the moment they set foot in the sacred training halls that you do not quit, you never surrender, you fight until you can fight no more, only that way will you ensure your place in the Eternal Hunt alongside the Eternal Huntress because then and only then will you have shown her the truth of your heart and earned your place and your rest.
So rolling under the strike Jay leapt to his feet and lunged forwards intending on using his blade to catch the rear of her knee which would be considered a crippling blow if it landed with the true force of a true strike, but Ketra saw it and spun clear while also deflecting his blade away with hers but as they passed with her spinning left and him right their eyes locked for a moment and he saw it, he saw her smile radiating through her eyes, she was truly enjoying this.
Jay righted himself and braced himself, his chest was heaving and he could feel the sweat trickling down his forehead and not only that it was soaking into his under armour all over his body, Ketra spun her blade and dropped into a new stance adopting a sly smile as she did, "It seems your Clan Mason really do know how to fight, you thought you were weak, you doubted your heart but I see a warrior before me plain and simple, you should not fight yourself only your enemies," Ketra said before dancing forwards and swinging at him in a series of overhead cuts that if a single one of them landed Jay would be in serious trouble, he'd always had problems trusting that people would know when to pull the blow and prevent it from landing even in the sparring halls of the Clan.
Matriarch Sela eleth Mason had always instilled into every single Saviour that stepped foot through her doors a sense of trust in their brother and sister Saviors as well as their brethren in both the Hunters, Seekers and Battle Angels, "Each member of the Guardian Core has their part to play and job to do and it is your job to trust them to do it while they trust you to do yours, we are all one big machine and if one part fails we all fail so we must make sure that every part always works as it should, no part is more important or less important than any other, do you think a farmer Xeno is lesser than you are?" she had bellowed.
"To which they had all bellowed "No Ma'am!" in perfect unison.
"Your pauking right they are not! Without them your bellies would not be full and your strength would wane, an army marches on its stomach as my Patriarch and your Grand Patriarch likes to say, so that farmer is every bit as important as you are, their hard work puts food in your belly and gives you the strength to fight to protect them, not that the farmers of Clan Mason need you to protect them just ask the last Dino Dozer that got into Aine's apple crop, I'm pretty sure she beat it to death with one of the apple trees it ruined, I think it's skull is sitting at the edge of her orchard as a warning to the others," she had said making them all laugh but the lesson was clear, the Clan functions as a whole and each must stand tall and proud, give your all and nothing less.
So that's exactly what Jay did, he launched into a series of rapid lunges and twisting parries to put Ketra on the back hoof, he was going to show her that not only was he not weak but that he was proud, he was proud to wear the uniform and badge of a Saviour, he was proud to stand for his people and for hers, he was proud of the way he looked at her and he was proud to finally understand what love is.
That last set of thoughts caught him completely off guard because they hit him like stabs through the soul, it was at that point that it made perfect sense, she was not just duelling for him, she was duelling so that he was forced to understand himself and her.
The thought was so powerful it seemed to freeze his entire being to the point where he barely heard the whose next to his head until there was a sharp and warm sensation on his right cheek along with a massive force to his body that knocked him right onto his arse sending his sword skittering away into the underbrush, he blinked and jumped back before a tickling sensation caused him to lift his hand to his cheek where his probing fingers were greeted with a sharp sensation of pain and wetness he drew his hand away and was instantly greeted with red fingertips, he was bleeding, she'd cut him.
"Blood is drawn and the opponent is defenceless! The hoosdrah is ended!" Ova yelled jumping forwards between the two with her hands held out towards each of them acting like a referee.
Ketra dropped her blade which still glistened at its tip with crimson drawn from Jay's cheek, she dashed around Ova with a thundering of her hooves on the soil as she just appeared above him looming over him like a concerned-looking Minotaur, before he could even lift his head let alone speak she grabbed hold of him under the arms and hoisted him into the air like he was a rag doll before turning his chin and lifting his head to examine the wound, he could see the worry and concern painted in her bright golden eyes.
"Let me see it, quickly get me a suture kit and a bandage!" Ketra yelled to Ova who nodded and dashed off back towards the camp as quick as her hooves would carry her.
She turned back towards Jay who was just dangling there in dumbfounded silence, "My apologies Jay it was not my intention to cut you I intended to stop my blade short by I over-corrected given how quickly you had been dodging my attacks, I expected you to move or to parry it, I did not wish this to be a duel where blood was drawn, merely a bloodless victory and nothing more but it appears that once again I have harmed you," she said her voice sounding forlorn.
Jay forced a smile despite the stabbing pain in his cheek from the three to four-inch gash that was now running along his upper jaw bone, fortunately, it did not feel deep, "It's alright Ketra I'm not made of glass big girl, you won fair and square and don't worry about this, I heal very quickly and in my culture scars are worn with pride, they are seen as symbols of battles fought, win or lose it's about having the grit to stand and fight regardless, it's one of the core principals of Clan Mason that no matter what the situation you fight for what you believe in and for those you love and that love you, thank you for reminding me of that," he said softly.
Ketra smiled proudly and happily that he'd obviously gotten the point of the duel as she placed him back down on the floor, suddenly Ova reappeared with a set of bandages and what looked like suture needles and ran over to their side before handing them to Ketra.
Jay held up a hand to stop her, "I must close the wound quickly or it will turn and cause infection!" Ketra said making to push his hand out of the way and Jay reached into his armour and produced a small silver-coloured cylinder that he'd been carrying around, his weapon wasn't the only thing to survive the crash, his medical kit had made it too.
"It's alright I got this, watch this," Jay said and he opened the cylinder and extracted a couple of tools along with a mirror, the mirror was shaped like a wedge but when you click the button at the bottom it opened like a fan into a perfect circle that allowed him to see his face, straight away he saw the cut running from his cheekbone to just below his left ear, holding the mirror in one hand he took the second tool which looked a bit like syringe just bigger and longer and inserted the tip into the wound with one slow press he began injecting a liquid into the wound that as soon as it came into contact with the blood began to expand until it filled the wound.
As all of the now tightly gathered Beledon watched in shock the pale green liquid sealed the wound and as soon as Jay scraped the excess away it began to contract and pull the edges of the cut shut sealing it up.
Jay admired his handiwork, all that was left of the cut was a thin pale green line that run from cheekbone to ear now, he nodded please with his work and quickly packed the tools back into the kit making sure that the two most important parts of the kit were not only intact but were all good, to his relief they were.
The two pen-like tubes were still in their holsters at the base of the kit, nicknamed the get out of dead free card the nano injectors were a one-way ticket back from the brink of death, based heavily on the Raptorian technology these Xeno improved versions were designed for one thing and one thing only, to save your life from the direst of wounds.
Infact from what Jay had heard the Grand Matriarch had worked out a trade deal for the nanites with the Raptorians in exchange for not only the upgraded versions but some of their bio gel which was what he had used to seal the wound on his face, the stuff was incredible working like a glue to bind the wound while also both antiseptic and antibiotic not to mention anticoagulant.
There was a serious amount of ear flicking and tail swishing going on around him as the surprised Beledon all watched him seemingly seal up a wound in seconds when they all knew that the stitches and bandages they had planned would have taken days.
Ava leaned down close to his face and smiled in surprise, 'This technology of your Clan Mason sure is something to behold," she said nodding her large horned head in approval.
"Won't stop the scar but will heal it in a day or two compared to the week minimum, while at the same time numbing it and preventing any infection from getting in, it's an all-in-one solution designed for the field and for most species, the only people it doesn't work on is the Xenos but they have their own version which neutralises their acidic blood first," Jay said and he relocked his kit and placed it back into his armour.
"Well now your wounds are treated and the hoosdrah is completed as the winner Blessed Knight Ketra may claim the boon she is entitled to from the loser Jay," Ova said.
"Is anyone going to tell me what the hell is going on?" Xao asked suddenly.
"Err me and Ketra were fighting an honour duel called a hoosdrah, I lost," Jay said and the young human cocked his head.
"Err why? I thought we are all on the same side here?" he asked.
"We are, there was a misunderstanding between Jay and me and I felt that my honour was insulted, so I called a hoosdrah to settle it and it is now settled," Ketra said looking at Xao.
"Oh good so all friends again, glad to hear it," he said blowing out a sigh of relief, it was obvious he had not liked being caught up in the interspecies misunderstanding.
"Not quite there is still the matter of my boon," Ketra said.
"Boon?" Xao asked.
"As the winner, it is my right to claim any boon I wish from the loser," Ketra asked.
"Oh? So what are you gonna ask for?" Xao asked curiously and Ketra shot Jay a predatory glance that would have made any Yautja girl start taking notes and before he could even comment on it she strode forwards and just plucked him from his feet and slung him straight over her large shoulder.
"Ova be a dear and retrieve Jay's sword for him please, I am taking my boon to my tent and I would recommend not disturbing us until the sun is up because this night I won myself a Vesdramah!" she declared loudly and all of the Beledon stood in shock for a moment before they all began cheering and whooping.
"Vesdramah!" they all began to chant as one while bouncing around and hugging one another with such glee that Jay was both confused and surprised.
"Err what does Vesdramah mean?" Jay asked as he bounced along on Ketra's shoulder like a wayward cub being carried back home by an angry parent.
"Roughly translated it means heart won by the sword, it is one of our oldest and most sacred traditions, it is done when the hoosdrah is declared and the challenger states their intention to claim the loser as their boon at the beginning of the duel, I did that so I upheld my honour and traditions, I did not hide anything and I spoke only the truth before our Gods and yours, I declared my intentions at the beginning of the duel and with the strength of my arm and my convictions I won it, so now I claim my prize and my prize beautiful human that is called Jay is you," Ketra said proudly as she headed right for their tent.
"Oh, oh right then," Jay said kinda dumbfounded.
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Ketra's heart shook with every step she took towards their tent, some doubts were rattling around in her skull and her heart about this course of action, he was not of their world and while she knew that Clan Mason always respected the rules and laws not to mention traditions of any world they visited he was still an alien being and she wondered about the morality of doing this, the last thing she wanted was him to feel that she was forcing him into something he either did not want or was not ready for.
She shook her head to clear the doubts and she forced herself to relive his memories that she had pulled from him when he had offered free access to his mind to see the truth of his words but she had seen so much more in there than she'd obviously meant to see, not only had she seen the truth of his words she'd seen the truth of his beautiful heart.
She'd seen exactly how she had appeared through his eyes, she had felt the rushes of emotions that he had experienced upon seeing her, she had felt his powerful and raw attraction to her not to mention the creeping of the sneak thief that was love as it crept into his chest to steal his heart away from him and it had overwhelmed her because it had been the very same feelings that she herself had been wrestling with since she had first laid eyes upon him.
He was so alien and so different to her or her kind, but that did not stop him from being the most beautiful creature that she had laid eyes upon, he was everything her soul had quietly yearned for her entire life, he was a male who did not need to bellow his victories from every rooftop he could find after horn of mead, he was a male who silently smiled at the victory of good knowing he had played his part, his reward was the victory itself and not the glory, this was what she had sought her whole life, a male who fought with his mind and not just his fist, a quiet warrior.
She lifted the flap and stepped into the tent before turning and fastening the toggles that would seal the flaps up and afford them some measure of privacy, she turned back and hoisted him down and placed him on his feet in the centre of the canvas room and he just looks so nervous and unsure of himself that to her it was a beautiful thing.
She stepped forwards and placed a hand on his injured cheek gently cupping it so as to not cause him pain but not to shy away from the injury she had caused but had not meant, she would not allow him to think she would not take responsibility for the mark that she had caused and he would bare for life.
As his soft milky brown eyes came up to meet hers and the smoothness of his warm soft skin radiated into her palm Ketra steeled her heart, she had made this claim on him and to dissolve it now would dishonour them both, to him it would say that she had changed her mind and that she actually believed was not worthy of her and as of her it would say that she was a Knight who did not keep her word because the declaring of a Vesdramah was more than just a claim, it was a sacred vow made before the Gods, it said that you found this person not only worthy of life but of a life lived at your side, it declared to them one and all that you claimed this heart before you are with the strength of your sword and vowed to use that very sword to protect it, now and always, it was a vow for life.
"Jay I want you to be under no illusions here, I did not declare the Vesdramah because I wish to simply experience an alien for a single night, I declared it because of what I saw in your heart and mind when you allowed me to walk among your thoughts and dreams, what I saw was something so beautiful I cannot even give it true words because none are powerful enough or pure enough to acuratly convery the power of them, I saw what you see and you feel when you look at me, I saw the truth, I saw how you are raw an unfiltered, you are a man who was raised under a far away star who was raised among some of the most powerful creatures and people all around him every day, who has always struggled to understand himself but despite this has never given up hope that not only will his place come to him but his true purpose, well here it is Jay your purpose is right here, its to love me as I know I love you, your purpose is to live your life at my side as I will joyfully live mine at yours, together we will stand tall and proud as we walk on towards our destiny what ever it maybe and do not think for a moment that that means I mean to tear you away from your beloved Clan Mason, far from it, as soon as our quest to reunite your people and you is done I mean to petition my Lord and Lady under the laws of my people to be allowed to join you on a further quest one that will take us back your home so that i might learn of this beautiful place you call home so that maybe one day we might return together and bring the unity of Clan Mason back here with us to unite all of the Beledon clans everywhere under one umbrella of peace," she said with as much power in her voice as she could muster.
Jay just looked truly stunned by her words to the point where he looked like he might tear up, but then he reached up and gripped her hand and held it tight against his injured cheek, "So it is true, our Matriarch Sela eleth's words were true all along," he said in a soft whisper and she cocked her head curiously.
"What words?' she asked.
"She told all of us not to look for love because love is the most elusive of prey and the more you hunt it the more it will hide and run, instead she told us to live our lives and then one day like a curious and friendly Fire Tiger it will slink out of the shadows and pounce on us whether we are ready for it but at that moment we will know its true face because it will be the one that hunts us down and it will all become clear because it is not for us to know love until the time is right because love hunts us always just waiting to strike, but when it does we must fight for it, or more accurately fight to surrender to it because you don't beat love, only your heart does that," he said softly and then to her sheer delight he did something beautiful, he kissed her fingers.
The sensation of his incredibly soft fleshy lips on her sensitive fingertips sent explosive shivers right up her arm and then exploded into her chest igniting her heart like the fireworks at the temple at one of the many festivals, bright, colourful, beautiful and warm.
When he stopped he looked up at her with those beautiful eyes of his that just radiated such warmth that she couldn't take it anymore, her heart was screaming at her in her chest and she had no intention of ignoring it any longer, she slipped her kissed fingers under his chin and lifted it before leaning down turning her head and pressing her muzzle to his mouth.
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Jay felt his heart turn into a bag filled with Freedom day fireworks in his chest while his brain turned into a bag filled with sparkly mush as he felt Ketra's lips find his own, it was happening, it was finally happening, he finally understood what the Clan leaders had been saying to them all along, love hunts you down, it catches you and it fights for you but only the truest of loves has the strength and devotion to hold you, it robs you of your strength and your senses but what's more is the fact that you don't care a single fuck because you simply know it is right.
He felt her massive lips part his with ease and her massive wide and slightly rough tongue slipped effortlessly into his mouth filling it, she wasted zero time beginning her exploration of him, she licked every tooth, every inch of the inner cheek and despite the battle, his own tongue waged every inch of that as well.
When they parted he felt the incredibly warm wash from her large flared nostrils and she gave him the warmest smile he had ever seen in his life, it was like bathing in the sunshine made flesh, she leaned down close to his ear and kissed his neck before nipping his ear lobe between her large flat teeth sending an electric sparkle into his brain and jolting his spine.
"Take the armour off before I tear it off you, I want to see all that I have won this day, I want to see my ebony beauty, but do it slowly my exotic one, I wish to savour every moment and every inch of you that my eyes win in their life long duel with those maddening coverings that hide your true naked beauty from them," she said softly and Jay nodded before stepping back from her.
As he watched Ketra sat herself down on one of the bed rolls they had spread out for the night and got herself comfortable to watch his display, his heart began to hammer in his chest as nerves began to twist and coil like snakes on a hot tin roof, just how the hell was one supposed to remove heavy plate armour sexily exactly?
That's when his resolve bit like the fiery steel of the Grand Patriarch's mighty blade Freedom Bringer, this mighty and beautiful woman had fought not for herself but for him, she had fought for the right to claim his heart and everything attached to it, he would not let nerves and fucking fear beat him, if this bovine beauty wanted a show then he was going to fucking give her one, this was going to be the sexiest armour removal in history!
That's when Jay remembered something when he'd seen that Raptorian boy band who'd come to play for the Clan recently, they'd invited Remal Rainbowscale up on stage and despite him being in full Seeker armour as he'd been on duty he had got up on that stage and he'd put a lot of the shame, it was about confidence, you had to project your heart and soul into your movements just like when you fight, you put your heart and soul into every movement and your confidence will flow with them, so that's what he would do.
So Jay began to sway gently from left to right turning his back to Ketra whose ears had pricked royally up now as her eyes locked onto him, he began to play a song from one of his favourite bands in his head as he moved, they were an interspecies band that called themselves Clan Fire and despite being a rock band their whole thing was singing about the power of passion and unity, they really knew how to get people jumping with catchy and powerful lyrics combined with insane guitar riffs not to mention dum solos that made people scream, but then their drummer was a Xeno who wore a bright red top hat.
So as he let his favourite song fill his head and his heart Jay began to envision himself there in the crowd and slowly piece by piece his armour began to hit the floor of the tent until all that was left was the under armour, he'd even managed to get his boots off without any fuss.
Next up came the Gambeson under armour which left him dressed in his own temperature-controlling undersuit which thanks to all the heavy gear atop it he was insanely glad of because it prevented him from overheating under it all, now this was much easier to shed and to feel sexy while doing it, she swayed from left to right after peeling it to his waist and with a series of flicks to his hips he began to wiggle free of it like a snake shedding its skin and wriggling free of it as it slithered down his legs to be kicked into the pile next to his armour leaving him in only his underwear.
This was it, the finnaly shred of his modesty, the last thing keeping his full bare flesh from the eyes of the woman who in his opinion had won and earned the right to see it, to see him as he truly was, naked but strangely not afraid.
So with one final twirl, he hoped would tease the big Beledon woman who appeared to be overheating by the way she was panting hard, she was beginning to sound like a horse who had run a marathon sat on that bedroll of hers, she also seemed to have shimmed closer and closer when he hadn't been looking, his underwear hit the pile and Jay stood looking over his shoulder and a single hip cocked smiling at her.
Ketra moved so fast that she was nothing but a sparkling blur, she vanished from the floor and appeared directly behind him, before a little eep noise could escape him she grabbed him and spun him like a top landing him on his back on her bedroll with her next to him with a single armoured hand directly under his head while he looked up at her with the widest eyes he'd ever had.
Before he could say a word her mouth crashed into his and she pushed his head into her large soft pillow under the weight of her passionate kiss that robbed him of every drop of breath that his lungs had held, when she finally parted from him he gasped for breath and his vision swam and pulsed as her taste lingered and sparkled on every inch of his mouth again, no one kissed like these Beledon girls he swore the Eternal Huntress.
"That was the most beautiful thing I have ever seen in my life, I merely wished you to remove your armour for me, but you went and seduced my soul with your dancing, you set fire to my heart and my loins, Jay, in a way that no one ever has and now I will reward you with the same, now you will lie still and wanting as I was forced to do, now you will watch me as I make you yearn as you made me," she growled in a husky wanting voice, all he could do was nod dumbly as the big Beledon knight rose to her full massive hight and just like had done began to sway he massive hips sending her tail swishing and her incredible rear shaking, it was like watching the statue of a Goddess coming to life and dancing for you, all to seduce you, well all Jay could think was, oh yeah it was working alright as her tail rapidly began to hypnotise him with its swishing, now all he had to do was keep himself on the floor as the armour began to fall, easier said than done.